It's interesting "to see all the different usual suspects saying" President Donald Trump's Gaza Strip plan will never work, says retired Lt. Col. Tony Shaffer.
"I just read a thing from England, Chatham House, 'Oh, it's done irreparable damage.' No, it's actually put on course a solution that will endure past the current grievance," Shaffer said Friday during an appearance on Newsmax's "The Chris Salcedo Show."
"Remember, what has happened is that the Arab nations kept this going for decades, to have a permanent grievance to use against the Israelis.
"Well, it's time we all grow up and get past that," he added.
Egypt has launched a diplomatic blitz behind the scenes against the proposal, warning it would put its peace deal with Israel at risk, officials said.
The Trump administration has already dialed back aspects of the proposal after it was widely rejected internationally, saying the relocation of Palestinians would be temporary. U.S. officials have provided few details about how or when the plan would be carried out.
The Palestinians have vehemently rejected Trump's proposal, fearing that Israel would never allow refugees to return. Egypt has warned that an expulsion of Palestinians would destabilize the region and undermine its peace treaty with Israel, a cornerstone of stability and American influence for decades.
Shaffer said the Egyptians showing up "is not surprising."
"President [Abdel Fattah] el-Sissi is a war college graduate. I think he's been in contact with the White House. I think they're thinking this through. And, yeah, I think the Egyptians are well suited.
"And truth be told, they were the ones actually running [Muammar] Gaddafi's Libya before Mrs. [Secretary of State Hillary] Clinton decided to throw it off, throw it into chaos. But I think this is definitely a plan that has value and merit," he told Newsmax.
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Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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